Kittens, Cats, and Him
by fately
Summary: Mikan and Natsume's relationship? It's somewhat a 'pet and master' relationship. So, here you go. The life of the stray cat and young girl. /Natsume X Mikan/ Rated T
1. Chapter 1

**Title :** Kittens, Cats...and Him

**Pairing :**Natsume Hyuuga X Mikan Sakura (...yeah, what else)

**Rating :** T (for safety)

**Summary :** On her way to the pet shop, she meets a young boy. According to the young girl, this boy...is a stray cat. Here begins the life of the stray boy, er, cat...and the young girl.

**Note :**This was intended to be a oneshot, but for some reason, it ended up becoming more than one chapter...

**Disclaimer :**I don't own Gakuen Alice. If I did, I wouldn't be here.

-

**Kittens, Cats...and Him **

**01**

-

"Your grandpa agreed?" Hotaru asked one more. Mikan nodded, once again, to the question. Her friend couldn't believe it. Was Mikan's grandpa in his right mind? He actually agreed to trust a pet to such a careless child?

"Yep. He said a small cat would be fine," Mikan smiled with pleasure.

Hotaru did not make a change in her facial expression, as always. But in fact, she was very worried. It wasn't that Mikan was an irresponsible child. She was the kind of girl to take care of a pet to the best of her abilities...But she was a very careless person, making strange mistakes.

"Here we are," Mikan smiled as she walked in to the pet store.

"Do you know how to take care of a pet?" Hotaru asked.

"Eh, Ruka-pyon promised me to help me take care of it. He's very good with animals," she giggled, glancing at the petite puppies and kittens. Hotaru sighed. Ruka wasn't a good enough solution to fix Mikan's careless mistakes, "Aw- This guy is so cute..." Mikan mumbled.

Hotaru glanced around the store. Wait, what was **that**? Through the glass walls of the store, she could she a faint figure outside in the dark alley. Although she could not make an exact prediction, it was obvious that the figure was staring at Mikan.

Mikan looked up, to see what was bothering her friend. She realized that there was a strange figure outside as well.

"What's that..."

"Wait, don't go alo-" before Hotaru could stop her, she was already running to the alley by the figure.

"Oh?" Mikan smiled, "Are you lost? Oh...I'm not going to hurt you."

Hotaru came out right after Mikan started to talk to the figure. She predicted that the figure was an animal of sort, inferring from the conversation. But to Hotaru's surprise, the living thing in front of Mikan...

...Was a human** boy**.

"Are you hungry?" she asked the boy. His eyes were sharp, as if they could pierce through walls, but Mikan seemed to not care, "I'm not going to hurt you," she smiled. The boy slowly tip-toed over to her. Hotaru was glancing at this strange scene. First of all, she was talking to the boy as she would talk to an animal. Secondly, this boy was acting like...a stray cat. Hotaru soon realized that she had to stop Mikan from interacting with strangers.

"He's a stray. Probably ran away from home. Don't mingle with him," Hotaru warned her friend.

"Oh!" Mikan gasped and her gaze saddened, "You ran away from home? Why?" the boy still was looking around her, but slowly crawled out from the alley.

"Mikan. You know he's not...a real cat," Hotaru twitched an eyebrow.

"Ah, Hotaru, he's a stray cat. What are you saying?" she replied very quickly, "I want him! I'll take this one home."

"...Mikan, are you...okay?" she stuttered, shocked by her friend's...stupidity, "He's not a cat. He's a HUMAN."

"...Oh, I know that. But he's like a stray cat. No where to go...We have to help him!" she turned her gaze to the boy, "What's your name?"

"...Like the hell I'm going to tell you."

Hotaru was shocked. The boy talked. It was faint, but he talked. He actually talked. So, he was human. The boy stood up, like a normal person.

"Don't be that way," Mikan whispered. Hotaru was getting worried. She really shouldn't be so close to the stray boy. Mikan held out her hand to the boy, "If don't have any place to go, you can come over to our house. Your name?"

The boy glared at her, as if he was defying her. But to everyone's surprise, he replied, "Natsume. Natsume Hyuuga."

"Natsume, if you don't have any place to go, why don't you come over to our place?" she offered. Natsume glanced her hand.

He has never had a place he could call home. Technically, just as Hotaru and Mikan said, he was just like a stray cat. He was lost, with no place to go. But he figured that he could trust this girl, lending him a hand. She looked a bit stupid, but not a bad person.

Natsume stepped out of the alley. Mikan beamed happily, "Our house is this way!"

Hotaru groaned. This...was just the start of a horrifying story.

-

**Chapter 01**

**fin**

-

Ahahahahahah. I've got this thing for Natsume X Mikan...It's just so cute. It's a pairing that makes me feel all cozy and fuzzy inside...I was planning to write a oneshot of the same storyline about Ikuto X Amu is Shugo Chara, but I figured I've never written Gakuen Alice, so I went with Natsume X Mikan.

But then...it ended up longer than I planned it to be. God, it is my first NON ONESHOT fan fic...I'm not sure if I'm doing it right;... I've read some Gakuen Alice fics for prep, but...I don't know if it's gonna help me...

Well, I hope you enjoy the crazy life of the 'stray cay' Natsume Hyuuga and his owner, Mikan Sakura.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter two...the title changed. Psh, I was stupid for not noticing that '...' doesn't work when trying to put titles up. I got the sudden urge to write another non oneshot fanfic, but I got the feeling I'd kill myself trying to update 2 fanfics at one.

**Disclaimer : **I don't own Gakuen Alice. If I did, I wouldn't be here.

-

**Kittens, Cats, and Him **

**02**

-

Hotaru stepped into Mikan's house. It was a very pleasent house. Clean, a bit old-fashioned, but seemed like a good home. Natsume looked around sniffing. Hotaru groaned. He's gotta stop this charades, or Mikan's really going to think he's a cat.

"Why don't you get showered? Your clothes are filthy," at Mikan's words, he looked down to his clothing. A dirty white shirt and brown shorts. Eh, they weren't too dirty, but he agreed anyways. Been a while since he's taken a bath, a proper one anyways. He's been running around trying to run away and he's ended up in a very small countryside village. He stepped into the bathroom that Mikan directed him too. She gave him some of her grandfather's old clothing before he turned on the water.

"Mikan," Hotaru followed Mikan into the kitchen, "You sure this is a good idea?"

"Hm? Why do you ask?"

"Because it's not a good idea in my point of view," Hotaru cynically answered.

"Oh, you're so paranoid. It's fine," her friend answered quite easily. Hotaru's expression did not change, but she crossed her arms quite strictly. Mikan was taking this too casually. There were so many factors to consider.

"Where would he sleep?" Mikan answered on the floor, just as most cats do, "His food?" she answered they have enough food for another person. They weren't poor and made enough money to support another person, "...I still don't trust him."

"Why?"

"He has the look on his face. The look of a beast," Hotaru glared at the bathroom door. Mikan giggled and replied on the lines of that Natsume was just a stray with no place to go. In Mikan's eyes, he was a stray cat. To Hotaru's, he was a monster. His bloody crimson eyes should say more than enough.

"He has such pretty eyes..." Hotaru's eye widened at her words. Pretty? Those violent, bloody, piercing eyes? Pretty? They weren't anywhere near pretty! It was either that she was wrong, or her stupid friend needs to get her eyes checked, "They look so sad...bitter. As if he's lost something important. We need to help him!"

Her emotionless gaze wandered near Mikan's smile. Her friend was always the type of person to help others, Hotaru realized that from her last 15 years of her life. But Mikan was a fragile girl. As strong as her spirit was, the weaker her heart was. Even a small lie, a small sin could break her heart into pieces. She really didn't want to trust her dainty friend in the hands of a beast.

As soon as Mikan finished slicing the strawberries into edible pieces, Natsume came out from the shower in grandfather's old clothing. She beamed as she took the strawberries to the porch, "Come, I'll dry your hair."

Natsume sat out on the porch with Hotaru and Mikan. He reached out for a strawberry and chewed on it intensely. His pasty skin proved that he hasn't been eating properly for a while. Mikan used the towel to dry of Natsume's hair. Yes, this scene was exactly like a little pet being dried off by it's master. The strawberries soon ran out (due to Natsume's intense hunger) and she head back to the kitchen for more.

"You have a pretty big scar there," Hotaru pointed to Natsume's arm. Although Mikan missed it, the other girl could clearly see the faded scar on his arm. Natsume nodded silently, and scowled at Hotaru, as if he were to say, _'it's none of your business'_.

She scowled back. She knew she couldn't trust such a beast. "Ah, how nice. The little stray cat, is actually a little beast," Hotaru whispered, "Don't hurt Mikan. She's not as strong as she looks," she whispered a second time, "I mean it."

"Understood," Natsume whispered back. Everytime he talked, a strange aura remained around him. Maybe it was because he did not talk very often?

"Are you always so silent?"

"You're not too talkative yourself, compared to your friend over there. The answer to your question is no. But if that girl over there wants me to act like a stray cat, I'll keep my words to myself and act like one," well, he was certainly doing a good job at this game of 'let's pretend you're a stray cat'.

"You've never met Mikan before. There's no reason why you have to go through all this trouble."

"I want a home," he replied quite solemnly. Hotaru gazed at him oddly. He was strange. Was he serious? "It looks of my only chance getting a proper place to stay is that girl over there."

"So, you want to use her as a tool to get a place to stay?"

"If you want to take it literally, yes. What, are you going to tattle tale on me?" she wasn't. Actually, she admired his way of thinking. Hotaru liked free items, and Mikan was a very good way to obtain free items because of her dense personality. Mikan soon came with strawberries and Natsume immediately became silent. The emotionless girl stayed emotionless, but inside, she growled. A two-faced self-proclaimed stray cat. How lovely.

The brunete softly petted the boy. Ah, master and pet. How pleasent...not. Hotaru snapped inside.

"Natsume, did you have a previous master?" Mikan asked gently. This may be a sensitive subject, seeing how he ran away.

Natsume nodded.

"Was he a good master?"

He shook his head.

"Oh...I see," her voice faded, "Was he a bad master?"

He nodded. A very bad one if you wanted to be exact.

"What's your previous master's name?" Natsume remained silent. He'd rather not say anything relating to the man. But after glancing into Mikan's devout eyes, he gave up and talked.

"Persona," he retorted very silently and quickly. But it was enough for Mikan and Hotaru to hear it.

"Persona?" Mikan joggled through her memory. Nope, never heard that name before. Natsume pouted. Even the thought of the man made him want to curl up in a corner with fear. If Natsume was a stray cat, Persona was a monster. She petted Natsume a second time, "It's okay. If you don't want to talk about it. I understand."

He scoffed a bit. It was ridiculous. A girl like her understanding his hardships in the past? It was impossible. But still...he wanted to lean on somebody. Was it okay for him to have a bit of comfort?

_"No."_

A sharp, piercing voice snapped through his head.

_"You can't have comfort. Or anything near that. You are a cat. A black stray cat. Nobody wants to go near a black stray cat. You are doomed to do my bidding. To kill. Never forget that...My pet."_

It was torturing him from the inside, eating up his very soul.

"Natsume...?" Mikan questioned the young boy. He was trembling. His eyes, there were a mixture of two very conflicting emotions, anger and fear. His crimson eye fired up. Hotaru stood up right away.

"Mikan...I don't think he's okay...Maybe you should back up." Hotaru warned her friend. She tried to pull Mikan away, but she wouldn't listen.

"But...he's in so much pain!" Mikan cried urgently. She broke free from her friend's retraint had head over to Natsume, "Are you okay? What's wrong? Do you need-"

"Mikan!"

Before they knew it, Natsume pushed Mikan away. Was he truly the calm boy they knew just a while ago? It seemed as if he was being controlled by something...He wasn't an innocent stray cat. He was a trained monster. Mikan's eyes teared up with fear. What is she suppose to do? Hotaru slowly crept over to the berserk boy and frightened girl, but the boy growled at Hotaru. If she went any closer, who knows what he would do to Mikan?

Natsume glared at Mikan, who was tearing up in fear. Ah. So this was what he truly was. A monster. He's scaring the poor little girl. But he couldn't help it. This was how he was raised, to become a killer. He decided it would be better to run away while he had some consciousness within him, before he would hurt anyone else.

"It's okay," before he knew it, a soft touch covered his cheek, "It's okay."

A warm, comforting voice surrounded him. His bloody eyes calmed down. Oh, what was happening? Just a moment ago, he was flaming with anger, going crazy. Now, he's calming down. What happened?...Did the girl in front of him result in this?

Mikan beamed. Her smile was so bright.

"It's okay," she repeated again and petted Natsume softly on the head. He sat down normally. He was back to the calm stray cat.

Hotaru sighed in relief. She thought something serious was going to happen. No, it was, but thankfully, Mikan calmed the boy down. What a relief... Hotaru glanced at the boy sitting down, pouting his lips, while Mikan was enjoying petting his soft raven hair.

Great, we got a sometimes berserk kitty cat on the loose here. Hotaru mumbled to herself. But inside, she had to admit, the boy's eyes reflected fear, and Mikan seemed to ease the pain. She scoffed a bit. It was funny, how well the master and pet looked together.

-

**Chapter 02**

**fin**

-

Dang, this is suuuper long. I don't even write oneshots this long...

Well, yes, what a sweet story. Natsume, the cat that goes berserk at times. Mikan, the owner, the only one who can calm the berserk cat down. Isn't this a lovely family? AWWW (insert your sweet little 'awww' here). Psh, I don't know how I got such a cute idea in my sinister, cynical mind.

...School starts today. NOOOOOOOOOOO...Spring break is over...I miss my shining week...


	3. Chapter 3

Thankies to all who reviewed!

**-**

**Kittens, Cats, and Him **

**03**

-

"Can't believe..." Mikan grumbled, "Grandpa said no..." We all knew this was coming. What kind of grandfather would say yes, if their only grandaughter brought home a young boy her age and told him he's her new pet?

"I don't see what's so astonishing about it," Hotaru commented.

"Hmp. If he doesn't want Natsume, then he doesn't want me either! It's good to help out the needy!" Mikan pouted, "Come on. Let's go around the neighbohood. Grandpa will definatly say yes after a walk. He just needs a while to think about it." Natsume nodded.

"You can go for a walk. It's almost two. I promised brother to be home. I'll see you tomorrow," she gave a slight wave to Mikan, her facial expression still very immutable, "You. I still got my eyes on you." she snapped to Natsume before she left. He glared back.

The scenery around the area was beautiful. It was the countryside, after all. The mountains were in the background and the scene around was just a typical countryside town. The countryside towns they show in movie, they weren't lying, they really do look like that. The clouds look like little white pieces of cotton candy.

"It's a small town, but has everything you need. But I wish to visit the big cities one day...Tokyo...Maybe for a few days or so?" Mikan smiled at her impossible hopes. Ironic, it just so happened that Natsume was from Tokyo. He probably rode the train for at least 7 hours to get here.

But he liked this place. It was different from where he used to live and he would do anything to get out of that place.

"Where do you want to go? We won't be going back home for a few hours. Is there any place in particular you want to visit?" she asked. Natsume would have liked to burst out something on the lines of, 'I don't know this place, you idiot. You have to actually guide me around the town'. But then, he realized there was one place he would like to go to.

"School."

-

School, what a strange boy. Mikan wondered. Who in the world who volunteerly like to go to a school? Well, she guess it didn't matter, now that officially he's her pet. Mikan's school was very small. Unlike the large city schools, in the countryside, where the population was very small, there were not many schools. Elementry, middle, and high schools had to be cramped up together in one building.

"We study here," she entered the building with Natsume and opened the door on the very left of the building. He guessed since the population wasn't very large, there was only one class per grade. This was the classroom was for ninth graders.

He sniffed around. Ah, so this is what a school smells like.

"Have you never been at school?"

Natsume stood silently. He have, but not properly. He usually missed classes often, "Not really." he whispered quietly.

"Oh, really," Mikan whispered back. She guessed his master wasn't a very good one, as Natsume told her earlier. School, nobody should miss school. Even though it's a bit annoying with work and teachers, it was a daily lifestyle for most children. No matter how much you complain about, it was difficult to sincerely hate it. It was depressing that Natsume couldn't enjoy such an istutitution.

She smiled, "Would like to go to school?" He looked up, "Not immediatly. Maybe in a few weeks, after we get you all settled down. We'll get you used to the neighborhood first."

School. Natsume couldn't help but give a very, very faint grin.

_Oh._ Mikan noticed it._ He looks cute when he smiles,_ she wondered._ Why doesn't he smile more often? Is it because he is afraid? Did his master ban him from smiling?...Well, it doesn't matter anymore. _

She petted his soft hair, "...You smell nice, like fruits."

He cracked another faint grin.

_If he doesn't know how to smile, I'll teach him how to._

-

So, while the master and pet were enjoying a tour around town, Grandfather was in a dilema.

"What to do..."

He said bring home a pet, not a human boy that you insist is a pet. The more he thought about it, the situation got even more complicated. It looked as if Mikan honestly wanted the boy. She's always been a kind girl. Ever since her father and mother entrusted her with her grandfather, she's never complained about anything.

She's never complained about why she has no parents. He taught her to help those in need and that was exactly what she was trying to do, help a boy who needs a home.

She never asked for anything so dearly. That made it even more strange. What about this boy made Mikan beg so helplessly? His eyes, they fumed with anger. At the same time, they gave a shadded aura of sadness. Two emotions, contradicting each other. He was a hard boy to understand.

He didn't seem like a bad person. He was quite good-looking as well. Oh, wait. What is he thinking?

-

"Really?"

"Yes, but only if he promises to become a proper member of the family. Which means he has to go to school properly." Grandfather added quickly. That wasn't a big problem. Mikan knew Natsume wanted to go to school. Even though he hasn't said anything, his smile told the truth.

She turned to Natsume and gave a blissful smile, "Isn't that great news?" Natsume looked up, "You'll have a home!"

Home.

How long he waited to hear those words.

"Where will Natsume sleep though?" she asked her grandfather.

"We'll have to figure that out. We live in a very old fashioned house in a very small village in the countryside. We don't have any beds and we all sleep on the floor with blankets. Would you be bothered by that?"

Natsume shook his head.

"That's good." Grandfather smiled with Mikan.

The warmth of his new 'family' was all so overwhelming. He's never been treated as a family member for quite a while. It was strange, new, foregin to him... The happiness of the Grandfather and his grandaughter was all so difficult to understand.

But it didn't feel bad.

-

**Chapter 03**

**fin**

-

Who lives in the Southern California area? (wave)

Any of you rabid anime fans in California going to Anime Expo?


	4. Chapter 4

Thankies to all who reviewed!

**Warning **: Symptoms of reading fanfics may include spending a severe amount of your time in front of computers, intense fangirl screaming (or fanboy screaming, if you are one), intense fangirl (fanboy) nosebleeds, intense fangirl (fanboy) blushing, severe braincell damage, heart failure, lung damage, bones broken, muscles pulled and the worst of them all, writing your own fic.

_The author of this fanfiction, or any other author of fanfiction, is not responsible for your symptoms. If you feel uncomfortable with the story you are reading, please go see your doctor, because this story may not be appropriate for you._

...Just a warning for my fellow readers before any of you become like me.

**-**

**Kittens, Cats, and Him **

**04**

-

There was nothing he could call his. Nothing. His arms, his leg, his mouth, his eyes, his abilities. They all worked for his master. Even his emotions weren't his.

"Stop picking out the kimchi!" Mikan lectured her...'pet', "Kimchi is very good for you! You need your nutrients, especially since you haven't been eating properly for a while!" Natsume pouted as he slowly chewed the piece of vegetable.

(ps. Kimchi - a traditional spicy Korean meal made of lettuce. Many Japanese families enjoy this meal as well)

"It's too spicy." he complained. Mikan glared at him, which caused Natsume to feel an intense feeling of guilt and continue eating his meal without saying anything else. Granfather chuckled as he saw the two fight. It felt like the family expanded in a good way. He finished his meal and went to his room.

"Hey, Natsume," Mikan started off a conversation cautiously, "It's been about a week since you've started living here. I think it's time you made some friends."

Natsume just ate his vegetables. Friend. That was another term he was unfamiliar with.

"Hey, don't ignore me!" she pouted. Mikan realized these kind of subjects were difficult topics to talk about with Natsume. But she felt like it was a duty of a master to teach their pet about the world and expand their social skills. What would happen if one day Mikan had to leave Natsume? He needed some social skills to survive in such a dangerous world, and she was going to teach him some.

"...Just eating my kimchi." Natsume replied very quietly, obediently chewing his food. Mikan patted his head, complimenting him on what a good job he's doing eating his vegetables.

"You saw Hotaru last time, right?" he nodded, "I have a few other friends your age. Would you interested in meeting them?"

He didn't reply. But Mikan took that as a yes anyways.

-

"This is Natsume. He's my new pet," she placed her hand on Natsume's head. Hotaru blinked her eyes. She never actually thought the girl would take him in. No, cross that. That her grandfather would actually agree to take in this vicious animal. Can he not see his beastly nature?...Well, he is Mikan's grandfather. What did she expect?

But, compared to Hotaru, Ruka Nogi was in utter shock. Pet? Did he just hear her correctly? This wasn't some kind of April Fools joke, was it? Because if it was, it's doing its job scaring the heck out of Ruka.

"...Pet?" he asked for clarification.

"Yes," ironically, Mikan didn't understand that most people don't take other human beings in as pets.

"...Pet?" he asked once more.

"...YES, Ruka, are you okay today?" yes, Ruka was perfectly fine, thank you very much. He actually would like to question the mental situation of his friend in front of him.

"But...Sakura...You realize this...person," he looked for a good word, and realized that was the only thing to explain Natsume, "...is human? He's not an animal?" Ruka observed the boy in front of him. Dark raven hair, crimson eyes burning, piercing through his heart. White skin. Look, he has earings. He's perfectly human.

Natsume looked at himself. Was there something on his white t-shirt and beige shorts? Ruka's intense stare was freaking him out.

"Oh, of course I realize that," Mikan smiled. Good, Ruka wondered to himself, she's not going crazy, "But he doesn't have a place to stay! I took him in. So...he's technically like a pet! Look! He even let's me pet his hair," and she demonstrated that.

"Well..." Ruka mumbled. The front porch of Mikan's house was very warm. A Saturday, just before noon. It seemed just a bit too warm for a spring morning. He guessed his friend was technically right. At least, he was eased with the thought that she knew this person wasn't a real animal, "Your name is Natsume Hyuuga? Pleased to meet you," Ruka beamed a smile just as sweet as Mikan's. Hotaru was silent. Ruka whispered something on the lines of,_ 'don't be rude, Imai.'_

"...Hotaru Imai." she finally gave up.

Natsume nodded to the two. Now, what was suppose to happen now? You don't automatically become friends just because you introduce your name to each other.

"Why don't we go out? Let's go buy some ice cream."

-

As Mikan suggested, the four reached the nearest store and bought some ice cream. She personally favored the new chocolate cone ice cream, while Natsume bought a strawberry cone one. Ruka perfered the vanilla one. Hotaru asked if she can just keep the money herself. Her friend refused and she ended up purchasing a chocolate cone ice cream.

But then of course, awkward slience roamed around the four 'friends'. Mikan suggested to split up by gender and go around the town. This offer quite scared Ruka, who was half sure that Natsume was mentally ill.

"...Well, Natsume," as soon as the girls left Ruka opened his mouth, urging to start a conversation, "You're...Sakura's...pet." he slowly uttered the words. Natsume nodded. He was hard to understand, "...You realize you aren't a real animal?"

"What do you take me as, an idiot?" well, you certainly acted like an animal in front of Sakura. Ruka would have liked to remarked that but took in the temptation.

"Well, I really don't see the point behind all this!" Ruka grined slightly like a young boy, "You really enjoy acting like a pet?"

"No," he answered bluntly. That was a bit too fast, "I've been wanting to get rid of the title, 'pet', ever since my previous...'master'," he gave a short pause, "...took me in."

"Ah, is that so? But that still doesn't explain why you're so nice in front of Sakura."

"She's an exception."

Exception? Now this was becoming a little too confusing...Oh, wait. Could it be that it's like those slave thingings he read in mangas? M...Maybe this boy is debted to Mikan and his working off as her pet to pay it off!

"...Are you by any chance paying off a debt?"

"What is this, a manga?" Natsume growled, "We're not in some kind of shoujo anime here." well, it was worth a try.

Ruka was still utterly confused. Natsume Hyuuga, difficult to understand. His oblique, twisted personality made it tiresome to completely capture what he was thinking. This could be all just an act of his, but...when Ruka looked into the boy's eyes.

He didn't seem all that bad.

"Hey, Natsume?" the pet looked up at the blond boy's words, "You don't look too bad. Actually kind of nice. I think we can become good friends."

Well, Natsume was clearly surprised. Nobody, and he means nobody, has ever given such a nice comment to him before (other than Mikan). And you know what? That comment actually felt kind of smoothing.

"Thanks."

Now, that was the first time he actually thanked someone.

-

"Did you have fun today?" Mikan asked curiously, interested if her pet became friends with Ruka. Natsume just looked up at the stars. In the house's front porch, you could get a good view of the dark starry sky. He nodded.

"From where you lived, could you see the stars like this?"

He shook his head. Dummy, do you think you can see stars like this in a big city like Tokyo?

"Oh, you must have lived in the city area."

Yes, idiot.

"Hey, Natsume," she leaned over to Natsume, who was eating a watermelon, "I know your previous master wasn't a very good one." _Psh, yeah, thanks for reminding me._Natsume wondered to himself. "Do you think...I can be a good master?"

He turned his gaze to the girl sitting next to him, quite nervously. It may have been that Mikan was being paranoid. She, as Natsume's new master, wanted to give him the best experience he could, unlike his previous one. She was intensely worried if this whole 'make a friend' idea was pressuring him something that he didn't want.

Mikan's feelings were immediately noticed by Natsume (because she's so transparent). These worries of Mikan were actually cute. He smiled brightly.

_Oh,_Mikan mumbled to herself. _He does look cute when he smiles._

"Yep. You're fine," he would preferred not to talk, but he thought these sort of words should be directly told.

"Really?" she glowed with bliss, "Thank you!"

Natsume was a beast, he was a wild cat. It may have been that he was not able to take in the temptation. So, half of it **was** his blame. But it was **also **Mikan's fault for making such an adorable smile, with her pink lips curved up beautifully. At that moment, Natsume didn't know what was driving him. So, it's half half, fair?

But the conclusion is, he kissed her. Right on the lips.

-

**Chapter 04**

**fin**

-

Muhahahahahaha Natsume X Mikan moment.

Yes, Natsume, you little beast, kissing the innocent girl...Oh my gosh, I sound so evil and perverted. (snicker snicker)

Kimchi. I was in Japanese class talking with my teacher when she mentioned the word, 'kimchi'. I was like, "kimchi?" I watch k-dramas so I've heard the word often, but never ate it before, then my teacher told me many Japanese families eat it (even though it's a bit spicy). It sounds cool ('cause it has like, 2 syllables, and ends with this _-chi-_ sound) so I decided to put it in.

Hm, what else did I wanted to say?...Oh, yeah. It was exam week at school, so I was real stressed. Kind of took longer than I expected to finish the whole chapter.

Please review!!


	5. Chapter 5

Thanks to all who reviewed!

**Warning **: Symptoms of reading fanfics may include spending a severe amount of your time in front of computers, intense fangirl screaming (or fanboy screaming, if you are one), intense fangirl (fanboy) nosebleeds, intense fangirl (fanboy) blushing, severe braincell damage, heart failure, lung damage, bones broken, muscles pulled and the worst of them all, writing your own fic.

_The author of this fanfiction, or any other author of fanfiction, is not responsible for your symptoms. If you feel uncomfortable with the story you are reading, please go see your doctor, because this story may not be appropriate for you._

**-**

**Kittens, Cats, and Him **

**05**

-

Ah yes, it was done on impulse. Natsume was never the person to think before acting and look where that has led him! Right now, he's sitting outside the house, on its front steps.

It's humiliating. All it was a little kiss, on the lips. A small, very small collision of lips. Then why she over reacting?

"Women," he groaned as scratched his hair, sighing and wondering what drove him to kiss the girl.

-

"Where's Natsume?" Grandfather asked as he walked out of the bathroom, finished with his bath. Mikan was pouting, still sitting on the front porch.

"He was being a bad pet, so he's outside." Mikan whispered. Bad pet, bad Natsume. Baaad.

"Oh, he is?" her grandfather sounded a bit concerned, seeing how Mikan doesn't get normally so fierce and angry. He told Mikan to not stay up too late and let Natsume in a few minutes, before she sleeps. She answered to do so and he went to his room to sleep.

"...My god," she whispered madly as she blushed to a color similar to Natsume's eyes. Bad Natsume, bad, bad, bad. No way was she letting him come in for a while. She slightly touched her lips, remembering the shocking touch. His lips, they were very soft, unlike his hard, piercing eyes.

And they tasted like watermelon.

What was happening to her? To be honest, she wasn't angry, more embarrassed. Was it normal for a master to feel this towards their pet? ...Oh, maybe it's like when a dog licks you!...Wait, no, you don't feel this way when a dog licks you. No matter how hard she thought about it, it was too difficult for her too understand.

If there was one thing she was sure of, it was that Natsume's going to be hearing a long lecture about kissing people from her.

-

"Natsume-" ten minutes later, Mikan felt a bit dazed and sleepy, so she decided to forgive him and give him a lecture to end this once and for all, "You can come in...?"

Natsume wasn't there.

"Natsume? Where are you?" she looked around the house for a bit, seeing if he was nearby, but it was just too dark to tell anything. Where was he? Where? Mikan felt a sudden sting of pain.

"He...couldn't have run away, could he?" no, the Natsume she knew wasn't that irresponsible. She ran into the house and woke her grandfather up frantically.

"...Eh..." he rubbed his eyes, "Mikan, what is it? I'm very..." he yawned, "sleepy..."

"Natsume, he's gone."

Grandfather's eye grew bigger.

"I looked for him but he's not there. What...what happened to him? It's not like him to run away, something must have happened. Oh...Oh no, I'm so worried," before she knew it, Mikan's eyes were tearing up. Grandfather brushed her hair.

"Calm down, it's okay. Natsume's a good boy, as you said, he couldn't have run away. He's a strong, independent fellow. Let's wait to see what happens in the morning, if he doesn't come back, I'll be sure to help you to the best of my abilities. We'll even call the police for help."

She nodded at her grandfather's words. She lied down on her bed in her room to sleep, but for some reason, her heart was just beating too fast for sleep. But she trusted Natsume, he's probably out somewhere at the moment. He'll come back. She was sure of that. He **was** her pet.

-

But he didn't come back.

A very depressed Mikan and Grandfather contacted the police about a missing person (Mikan would have liked to call him a pet, but Grandfather said the police wouldn't understand).

"A description of him?" a officer at the front desk, very poliet, and very sincere looking, asked.

"Uh..." Mikan wondered, "He has very red crimson eyes. His eyes are a bit slanted, and pointed. He has a very pretty nose, point up...I think he has earrings? Yes, he does. His hair is raven colored. He's just a bit taller than me. And...and..." she teared up, but continued, "I... I think he was wearing brown shorts and a white baggy shirt when we last saw him."

"Do you have any sort of picture of him?"

"Um..." she turned to her grandfather, "No...he just recently started living with us, so we don't have any kind of picture."

"Do you know his age?"

"I think he's my age, yes, he's about 15."

"Okay," the officer stood up from his desk, "We'll inform you soon as possible with any information. We'll try our best, but it would help if you looked as well." he glanced at Mikan, who was sobbing lightly, "Don't cry," he brushed her tears, "You must be dearly worried about this boy."

"Yes, he's our family," Mikan replied, "We're not going to give up and leave him out there."

"...Of course," the officer smiled, "He must be very important to you. Don't worry. If he's that important, he'll definatly come back."

She nodded, with a bit of hope.

-

So, where was he again? Oh yeah, Persona discovered him, how lovely...not. It was horrifying. How much he despised Persona's piercing gaze, but ironically, Natsume's gaze was just as piercing as well. He had no idea where he was. Well, he could tell it was a basement, a very dark and roomy one. There were boxes everywhere, maybe this was a storage room.

How stupid, he actually let himself get caught. But what could he do? Persona's gaze always made Natsume hopeless, weak, little. At least Persona wasn't here at the moment. Oh, wait. This isn't the time to be happy, he's been kidnapped.

"Damn it," Natsume grumbled to himself. Where the heck was the exit? He couldn't find even a bit of light, it was overwhelming darkness. What time was it? He couldn't even tell that.

He wondered, what Mikan would be doing at the moment? He hoped she realized that he was gone by now and looking for him, if she wasn't Natsume's as good as gone now. He murmured to himself.

But he couldn't get rid of this nagging feeling that followed him.

Could it be?

Could it be that he missed her?

That he actually wanted to see her annoying smile? Hear her soft voice? Smell her delicious scent? No matter how much he tried to take his mind of the topic, Mikan Sakura was wandering in his mind, knocking every part of his heart.

No, he might be denying himself, shutting off every possibility, but he didn't want to admit it. He, Natsume Hyuuga, was not in love with Sakura Mikan, no way. NO. Zip, none, nada. No possibility of that. He shivered a bit at the thought.

"Oh, you're awake," a eerie voice crept in, "Natsume, you have defied me."

Persona. _Oh, god. If you exist, please, please kill me now. I'd rather be dead than communicate with this creep._

"You were hiding very nicely in such a remote place, I'll be honest, it took me a while to find you," Persona sneered._ It didn't take you long enough_, Natsume wanted to yell, "Dear Natsume, come back. I have duties for you to finish."

His piercing eyes made Natsume grab his head in terror. It has been a while since Natsume has felt this way. The last time he did was when he first met Mikan, at her house. After then, he tried his best to compress his emotions and stay as calm as possible. But Persona made it all come back up to the surface.

"Your eyes, they've grown softer," the man commented as he observed Natsume's eyes, not taking any care in his condition.

_God, please take me away. Right now. It wouldn't matter if I died right now, hell can't be any worse than this guy. Oh, wait. _Natsume clenched his fist,_ If I die, what will happen to her? She'll be worried, real worried. She's just like that....Great, she's done something to me. Even right now, at a life or death situation, I'm worrying of her._

He felt so pathetic.

-

**Chapter 05**

**fin**

-

I've got this grudge against Persona...Nothing big. I think he's a super strong awesomely hot looking evil maniac (well, not as evil as that elementary president) but he's just...twisted, you know? I personally like him to be the villain (because he just has that weird villain look)...I think the story is almost coming to an end. Maybe a few more chapters? I never really expected this story to be a long one, because it was originally an oneshot, but I just got all these inspirations. I hope I don't ruin it (or maybe it is already ruined) until the end...

Review PLEASE?


	6. Chapter 6

Thanks to all who reviewed!

**Warning **: Symptoms of reading fanfics may include spending a severe amount of your time in front of computers, intense fangirl screaming (or fanboy screaming, if you are one), intense fangirl (fanboy) nosebleeds, intense fangirl (fanboy) blushing, severe braincell damage, heart failure, lung damage, bones broken, muscles pulled and the worst of them all, writing your own fic.

_The author of this fanfiction, or any other author of fanfiction, is not responsible for your symptoms. If you feel uncomfortable with the story you are reading, please go see your doctor, because this story may not be appropriate for you._

**-**

**Kittens, Cats, and Him **

**06**

-

Missing Pet.

"That's better," she smiled proudly. The flyer came out quite nicely and complimented herself. Hotaru sighed.

"This isn't going to help."

"Oh, hush. We'll see about that," Mikan giggled with pride. Her friend didn't approve any of this, so don't classify Hotaru in the same group with Mikan, she'll be throwing rocks at you. The poster had a somewhat accurate sketch of Natsume and a small description of him. Didn't say anything about a reward though.

"...You realize it would be faster if you put up a poster saying 'Missing Person'? This is going to confuse people." Hotaru spat out something on the lines of 'stupid idiot' which Mikan didn't quite get.

Person. Oh yeah, Natsume was a person. Don't remind her, please. She was trying her best to cover up the truth and persuade herself to think that her first kiss was her pet cat, not Natsume. Please don't remind her. Just the thought of it would make her blush in immense embarrassment. Somebody, help Mikan, please.

Hotaru was just trying to figure what the hell was wrong with her tomato red friend.

-

Persona was never good with roads and maps. Which exactly explains why he was lost.

"...Where was the warehouse again?" the masked man wondered. getting quite annoying, his dark suit didn't help the situation either. Natsume was in the warehouse, probably sleeping, oh, Persona just gave him some sleeping pills, the boy was too noisy, trying to escape.

A young girl was next to him, all nervous and worked up, "I...I think we're lost."

"Yes, I suppose you're right, Nobara." Persona brushed her hair lightly, and the girl replied happily with a weak smile. Persona, her master. He was not a bad persona at heart, then why did Natsume misunderstand him? Why did Persona push Natsume so hard, more than he pushed the others?

"Maybe we should ask somebody..." Nobara suggested and her master agreed wholeheartedly. She shyly walked up to two girls, talking about a subject she did not understand. In the hands of the girl with ponytails and brown chocolate eyes, were a few flyers. She could not tell exactly what it said, but she saw the dark bold letters saying 'Missing Pet'. She nervously walked up, but wasn't able to bring the words out of her mouth.

"Um...excuse me? Do you need help?" Mikan glanced at the shy girl, oddly trying to say something.

"D...Do you know which way to the warehouse near the train station?" the girl blushed madly, stuttering the words out.

"Oh," the brunette gave a flashing smile, warming up the embarrassed girl's heart, "...Hm, if you head down straight down that way," she point down the road, "you'll see a house with a brown roof, turn left from there and you should see the station. The warehouse should be somewhere in the right."

Nobara nodded and ran back to her master. Mikan glanced at this odd scene. Strange, a young girl and a older man. Looking for the warehouse? This is very odd.

"Ah, wait!" Mikan ran up to the girl and handed her the flyer, "If you by any chance see somebody like this, please contact me! My name is Mikan Sakura. Our house number is on the flyer!" Nobara gave a weak grin, and Mikan smiled brightly. They went their desperate ways, but Nobara felt like she pleaded to see this girl, once again.

-

"We're back," Persona entered the warehouse, "Nobara, give Youichi something to eat." he ordered the girl. She never said no, and quickly started to bring something out of a plastic bag. They bought some items at the nearby store. The masked man went into a dark room.

"I'm bored." Youichi told her, "Why are we in the warehouse?" he was obviously disliking the dark and dirty environment of the warehouse.

"Master Persona is very busy. You'll have to understand, okay?" Youichi nodded, "Here, have some ice cream. We bought the kind you like." she handed over the chocolate ice cream bar. The young child licked on it quietly.

"Where's Natsume nii-chan?" his words cut Nobara's heart. What should she tell him? She couldn't tell the young boy that his favorite brother was being punished by Persona, that would break his heart.

"He's...eating ice cream as well."

"Where?"

"A...Outside." really, was that the best excuse she could think of? Thankfully, Youichi was tired and couldn't think too clearly. He took a nap right after Nobara finished her words. Persona came out from the room he previously went in.

"Get Natsume something to eat," he ordered the frightened girl. She knew that Persona wasn't evil. He wasn't evil at heart. If he was, why would he be getting Natsume something to eat? Why would he be worried about him? But that contradicted one thought, if Persona wasn't soo sinister and evil, why is he punishing Natsume so hard?

Nobara quickly concluded her thoughts and ran into the room with some food. The room was dark. She turned on the lights and it faintly lightened up, enough to see what was arround her clearly. She did not say a word and closed the door. Natsume, all tired, physically and emotionally.

"Food," she pushed a plate of food to him. He was lying on the ground, covered in sweat. He lifted his chin and gazed up on his companion. Her soft gaze was sad, filled with pity. He growled.

_Bullshit, I don't need your pity._ He mumbled.

But he knew he couldn't blame her. They were alike, Youichi, Nobara, and Natsume, all reigned by the terror of Persona. Nobara and Youichi have done some unspeakable horrors as well. They were like his family, if Natsume could run away with them, he would.

"You need food to survive," she said once again and looked upon is crimson eyes, flaming. But then, she noticed something, "Your eyes. They look...softer."

The same thing Persona commented on. Hah, it's all Mikan Sakura's fault. Natsume snickered.

"Is there anything I can do for you?" she asked, "Persona's outside right now, he said he needs to meet somebody, probably from the yakuza." Natsume's ears pointed. Yakuza, that means he'll be out for a hour or so. It would be impossible to escape far enough to go out of his reach, but would it be possible to meet somebody?

"I want to meet somebody."

Oh, that's a shocker? Natsume Hyuuga wants to meet somebody? Nobara tilted her head, "I could do that. Does he live around here?"

"Close. It's a she."

That's even more shocking.

"Her name is Mikan Sakura. Brown hair, usually in ponytails, white pale face, a bit shorter than me, my age, brown chocolate eyes...She should be living in a old fashioned house in the west side of town, the house in on top of a small hill, you can't miss it."

Wait, where has she heard that name before? Nobara quickly handed Natsume the paper she received, "I was outside with Persona and a girl gave me this."

Missing Pet, it said in bold letters and a drawing of Natsume and a description of him in her handwriting.

He grinned, and Nobara shivered, Natsume smiled?

"Yep, she's the one."

-

**Chapter 06**

**fin**

-

Note, Yakuza is something like the Japanese mafia, or a group of gangsters on the higher level. Yes, this is the oh so, Persona works for the yakuza plot. You've seen this several times, haven't you? I hope you didn't.

Currently Listening to ... SHINee's Juliette.

Okay, I might sound totally biased and hyper, but I love SHINee. Totally, I've been listening to this song since the day it was available and I downloaded the music video on my mp3 and have been spreading the word...I already got one of my friends in love with Onew (yes!).

Please review!!


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